Tuesday, May 24, 2005

In the Bristol Study that claimed to prove milk that wasn't as bad for health as some nutritionists believe it appears the effects could be more to do with what the milk replaced rather than the milk itself.

Not only did the best subjects switch to semi skimmed milk to cut down on saturated fat, but they also exercised more and consumed less alcohol - hardly conclusive evidence to defend cow's milk.

In the Oxford study, one of the largest ever studies of vegetarians the vegans (who consume no dairy) did best on avoiding heart disease and reduced risk of stroke.

They were given comprehensive health check-ups, including a heart tracing (ECG) at the start of the study and subsequently every five years for a period of 20 years. Hospital and family doctor records were also checked.
During the study period, 54 men had a stroke and 139 developed symptomatic ischaemic heart disease (heart attack or angina), and 225 died.

At the start of the study, virtually all milk consumption was whole (full fat) milk, but a random sample of the surviving men in 2000, showed that almost all of them had switched to skimmed or semi skimmed milk within the preceding eight years.
Men who consumed the most milk every day (a pint or more) had a higher energy intake, suggesting that they were more active. Cholesterol levels and blood pressure readings were similar in high and low milk consumers (less than half a pint)

Men who drank the least milk tended to drink the most alcohol.

Men who drank the most milk had a lower risk of ischaemic heart disease or stroke than those who drank the least, and in the case of stroke this risk was significantly lower. The findings held true even for those men who had started out drinking full fat milk.